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Photos: Elvis Fans Commemorate His Life

ELVIS PRESLEY

Every year, thousands of Elvis devotees flock to Memphis to remember the singer's death on Aug. 16, 1977. The main event of "Elvis Week" is the solemn candlelight vigil at Graceland, his longtime home, at midnight Tuesday.

In 2011, fans have something else to commemorate. It was 55 years ago — 1956 — when the first two Elvis albums were released, launching an international music career that brought Elvis' mix of country, rhythm and blues, and gospel to millions of fans around the world.

"It's a documentation of what I think is rock music's most incredible year," said Ernst Jorgensen, a music producer and Elvis catalog expert. "Nobody was prepared for Elvis."

American rock and roll singer Elvis Presley smiles after he is promoted to army sergeant at the U.S. Army Unit's maneuver headquarters in Grafenwoehr, Germany, Feb. 11, 1960. Presley is promoted to the NCO rank in the 1st Battalion, 32d Armor Regiment, 3d Armored Division.

(Photos credit by AP Photo)

ELVIS PRESLEY(Photos credit by AP Photo)

ELVIS PRESLEY(Photos credit by AP Photo)

ELVIS PRESLEY(Photos credit by AP Photo)

ELVIS PRESLEY

Presley, bride and wedding cake - This May 1967 file photo of Elvis Presley and his new bride Priscilla cutting the cake at their wedding reception in Las Vegas is transmitted for use as desired on the anniversary of his death.

(Photos credit by AP Photo)

ELVIS PRESLEY

Singer Elvis Presley and his bride, the former Priscilla Beaulieu, are shown at the Aladdin Hotel in Las Vegas, Nev., after their wedding on May 1, 1967. Presley, 32, and Beaulieu, 21, both from Memphis, Tenn., met while he was stationed in Germany with the U.S. Army.

(Photos credit by AP Photo)

ELVIS PRESLEY(Photos credit by AP Photo)

ELVIS PRESLEY(Photos credit by AP Photo)

ELVIS PRESLEY(Photos credit by AP Photo)

ELVIS PRESLEY(Photos credit by AP Photo)

ELVIS PRESLEY(Photos credit by AP Photo)

ELVIS PRESLEY

Elvis Presley sings during a concert in this 1973 file photo. Presley fans will soon have a place in the islands to fondly remember why they couldn't help falling in love with the star of "Blue Hawaii." Wearing his signature flare-legged, big-collared, bejeweled and strategically snug ensemble, the King will reappear in the islands in the form of a life-sized bronze statue marking the site of his historic 1973 concert "Elvis: Aloha From Hawaii."

(Photos credit by AP Photo)

ELVIS PRESLEY(Photos credit by AP Photo)

ELVIS PRESLEY(Photos credit by AP Photo)

ELVIS PRESLEY(Photos credit by AP Photo)

ELVIS PRESLEY(Photos credit by AP Photo)

ELVIS PRESLEY

Elvis Presley memorabilia is seen during a preview of the special exhibition "Elvis Presley in Germany" in the House of German History in Bonn, western Germany, Thursday, Nov. 18, 2004. Around 300 objects of the US "King of Rock'n Roll" are on display.

(Photos credit by Hermann J. Knippertz/AP Photo)

ELVIS PRESLEY

Jack Soden, CEO of Elvis Presley Enterprises, right, holds the official recognition by the RIAA of Elvis being the all time leader in single sales with over 50 million singles sold, as executive director of the Memphis Chapter of the Recording Academy John Hornyak stands by, during a presentation at Graceland in Memphis, Tenn. Saturday, Jan. 8, 2005, on what would have been Elvis' 70th birthday.

(Photos credit by Greg Campbell/AP Photo)

ELVIS PRESLEY

The grave of Elvis Presley is covered with flowers on the grounds of Graceland in Memphis, Tenn., on the 30th anniversary of his death Thursday, Aug. 16, 2007.